At present, there are very few commercially available DIY GSHP systems due to the complexity of the sizing issues. It is therefore recommended that all systems are professionally installed. The cost of a professionally installed GSHP, including the system itself, ranges from about £1,200 to £1,700 per kW of peak heat output.

Vertical borehole systems are more expensive than horizontal systems due to the higher installation costs. A typical 8kW system would therefore cost between £9,600 to £13,600.  However, costs will vary from property to property.

Benefits of GSHP include:

The Coefficient of Performance (CoP) is an indicator of the efficiency of a GSHP system and indicates the number of units of heat output for each unit of electricity used to power the equipment. Typical CoPs would range between 2.5 - 4.

The higher end of this range is for under floor heating, because it works at a lower temperature (30- 35ºC) than a radiator system. Dependent on the size of the system installed, the heat distribution system chosen and the resulting CoP, GSHPs can be a cheaper form of space heating than oil, LPG and electric storage heaters. It is, however, comparably more expensive than natural gas – although with rising gas prices this could soon change